Listen to your body? I say not always!

SHBoss1673
SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
edited September 24 in Motivation and Support
I hear that term all the time on MFP. "Listen to your body."

and I know people mean well when they say it. But come on. Our bodies are not always telling us what's good for us.

EXTREME case in point, a recovering heroine addict, should they listen their body? Less extreme case in point, a chocolate craving. And don't sit there and say "Yes, that's fine." Not for everyone it isn't. Sometimes we need to take our body out to the woodshed and teach it some manners. The same is true for those of us who spent years warping and abusing our hormones by overeating and overindulging. Those years of abuse have warped our body's perception of what it "needs" and listening to it can get you in a whole heap of trouble.

Now, I agree, if you're at a good weight, and have been successful for a while with healthy eating and exercise, generally it's fine to listen to your body, because your body knows when it really needs food. But for the majority of MFP members out there, your body isn't in the position to tell us to eat anything.

So I say, let's keep the "listen to your body" statement very tightly defined and qualify it by first saying, "If you are healthy". For the rest of us I would instead say "trust the system, and trust that you're doing the right thing". Eventually your body will catch on to the program, once it starts becoming stronger, healthier, and dropping fat, it'll figure it out.

-Banks

Replies

  • erikblock
    erikblock Posts: 230 Member
    Well said, sir.
  • pniana
    pniana Posts: 254 Member
    Knuckels!
  • YogaRunner
    YogaRunner Posts: 652 Member
    Amen. I totally agree. Well said
  • idahogirl71
    idahogirl71 Posts: 1,110 Member
    100% agreed....I abused my body by overeating for the last 27+ years and now that I no longer listen to what my body is saying I am dropping the weight (30 pounds in 6 1/2 wks). If I listened to what my body is saying I would still be eating chocolate and chips as I did in the past and I would still be living the life of a yo-yo.
  • barefootbeautiful
    barefootbeautiful Posts: 144
    Well said! I tend to lean more towards the "Be AWARE of your body" kind of phrase. I wasn't kind on my body putting on weight, and I'm not being kind to it getting it off. I'm pushing hard in the gym - harder than I would if I "listened" to my body; and I tend to ignore my body when I walk down any other grocery aisle than produce. Let's be fair - if I had REALLY been listening to my body from the start, I wouldn't be here in this situation.

    So yeah, I agree. As an added bonus, I also have injuries to be aware of - arthritic knee, nearly torn Achilles - that do need attention, but again, if I listened every time one of those hurt, I'd never make it to the gym. So I'll stick with "Be AWARE." Anyone who is familiar with fitness will know when to push and when to sustain, and those who aren't quite yet will be soon! It's a fast lesson.

    "Make your body listen to you" would probably be better. When your eyes see chocolate, eat a carrot and convince your stomach it's still sweet. :)
  • bzmom
    bzmom Posts: 1,332 Member
    I Never listen to my body because it never agrees with me. :wink:
  • GlutenFreeWench
    GlutenFreeWench Posts: 127
    I will say- I agree with the following exceptions:

    Hunger. If you're having physical signs, LISTEN. It can be dangerous if you don't. (Especially if you have any underlying medical conditions- diabetes, etc). Don't starve yourself- and remember that you need food. If you don't know the physical signs of hunger- you need to look it up- and watch your body for them. For me, it's crankiness.

    Pain. If you're hurting, not the soreness from a good workout, but actual pain from using your joints in a motion- stop and think. I personally have horrible knees- and ignoring them can sideline me for a few days with the pain. They actually got worse when I was working out- and pushed through the pain. A torn meniscus was the result. If you don't know why you're hurting, get it checked out. Same with chest pain. Never a smart workout continuance.

    Now, I agree because you don't need that piece of chocolate. You're not going to die without it. If you've eaten enough, you don't need another plate at dinner. Your eyes are wanting it, not your stomach. Drink a bottle of water. Go for a walk. GET AWAY FROM THE FOOD.
  • scagneti
    scagneti Posts: 707 Member
    i cringe a little when I see someone saying that someone desperately looking for advice to change decades of mistreatment to "listen to their body". My body is the one who got me up to 185 by convincing my brain that eating whatever it wanted and not exercising was fine because I wore the weight well. It wasn't until my brain grew a set and stepped up and said "wait just a minute" that I lost the 44 lbs and am much healthier and even happier than before.

    I STILL have to watch my body when my brain checks out (like last night -- darn you Habs and your compelling hockey games!) When my brain was checked out and concentrating on Price's insane saves, my body somehow consumed a box of KD. A whole box. i swear I still don't know how it happened. I had enough calories so it wasn't like it was an insane binge, but seriously,, how did that happen? I didn't even know I had a box in the house. But being Canadian, I think every house is legally required to have at least one in case of emergencies.

    Even as we speak, my body is convinced that I should take a 10 minute break from work and hit Sobey's for a piece of cheesecake. Stupid body.
  • amelia_atlantic
    amelia_atlantic Posts: 926 Member
    Well said! I tend to lean more towards the "Be AWARE of your body" kind of phrase.

    I completely agree with both of you!

    I think the whole "listen to your body" phrase should be used when you have an injury or you're at risk of one. If you could do more harm than good ignoring those signs, then "listen to your body".

    However, if you just have an intense craving for a birthday cake--try to really focus on WHY you want that. Your body is not telling you to eat it. Your feelings, your habits, your enviornment (etc) is CONVINCING you.

    STAY STRONG!
  • MisdemeanorM
    MisdemeanorM Posts: 3,493 Member
    Yes and no - depends on what you are listening for. Are you listening for "I'm hungry" "I need food" I need chocolate" "I can't do this workout" etc? or are you listening for "I'm fatigued" "I have great energy" "I'm in pain" "I'm thirsty"?

    I think listening to your body is good - listening to the little voice that tries to trick you into thinking it's your body talking - not so good! :laugh: Pay attn to if it is actually your body, or your mind - they may be telling you different things.
  • scagneti
    scagneti Posts: 707 Member
    I find that that statement is used most frequently when people are trying to justify not consuming ample calories and then to top it off, not eat back the 800 calories they burnt at the gym (leaving themselves a whopping 200 calories for their BMR PLUS all of their other non-gym activities for the day.

    "I ate 1000 calories and then worked out for two hours and I'm just not hungry so I can't possibly eat another bite" ... inevitable reply "don't worry about eating it back. Listen to your body". ARGH!

    Yes your body isn't specifically saying "feed me" because it's been starved so long if doesn't want to waste the effort in sending hunger signals to your brain or stomach because it knows that you've already learned to ignore them, so it just subsides on the limited calories and cuts a few corners here and there by burning muscle or organ mass or by not effectively handling your bodily fuctions.
  • Mindful_Trent
    Mindful_Trent Posts: 3,954 Member
    Great post - I 100% agree...
    Less extreme case in point, a chocolate craving. And don't sit there and say "Yes, that's fine." Not for everyone it isn't. Sometimes we need to take our body out to the woodshed and teach it some manners. The same is true for those of us who spent years warping and abusing our hormones by overeating and overindulging. Those years of abuse have warped our body's perception of what it "needs" and listening to it can get you in a whole heap of trouble.

    A fantastic read that relates to this topic is "The End of Overeating" by David Kessler - I highly recommend it. It gets a bit technical at times, but it goes into what junk foods/the typical bad western diet does to our bodies & our systems and why our bodies can actually work against us when we've been feeding it junk for a long time. (In other words... why we can't always listen to our bodies!)
  • godblessourhome
    godblessourhome Posts: 3,892 Member
    "Make your body listen to you" would probably be better. When your eyes see chocolate, eat a carrot and convince your stomach it's still sweet. :)

    fabulous!
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
    Great post - I 100% agree...
    Less extreme case in point, a chocolate craving. And don't sit there and say "Yes, that's fine." Not for everyone it isn't. Sometimes we need to take our body out to the woodshed and teach it some manners. The same is true for those of us who spent years warping and abusing our hormones by overeating and overindulging. Those years of abuse have warped our body's perception of what it "needs" and listening to it can get you in a whole heap of trouble.

    A fantastic read that relates to this topic is "The End of Overeating" by David Kessler - I highly recommend it. It gets a bit technical at times, but it goes into what junk foods/the typical bad western diet does to our bodies & our systems and why our bodies can actually work against us when we've been feeding it junk for a long time. (In other words... why we can't always listen to our bodies!)

    I may have to check that out. Thanks ab!

    FYI guys, maybe I wasn't clear, when I say listen to your body, I mean the way that other people use the term, not to literally ignore your body at all times.

    Of course you should listen to your body when you hurt yourself.

    I am not in the camp for hunger though. Hunger does not always translate into requiring food. Hunger is just your interpretation of a set of hormones, ghrelin chief among them. and like any hormone, your body can incorrectly produce it, especially when you abuse your body. I'll go so far as to say, people who are obese or have other food related issues should generally ignore hunger feelings if they are sure they're eating right, as until you do some repair, those feelings are wrong. That isn't to say that you should just completely block out your body, there's limits, I'm aware of that, but within reason, you're gonna have to use a little discipline at some point.
  • sincitylulu
    sincitylulu Posts: 22
    I am at a healthy weight and I still can't listen to my body. If I could possibly listen to my body then keeping off the weight would be completely effortless. I would have never gained weight in the first place.
  • SHBoss1673
    SHBoss1673 Posts: 7,161 Member
    I am at a healthy weight and I still can't listen to my body. If I could possibly listen to my body then keeping off the weight would be completely effortless. I would have never gained weight in the first place.

    thus we get into the more complicated part of, now that you're healthy, and can listen to your body, the hard part is understanding what it's saying.

    Sometimes when I listen to my body, I think I'm trying to read braille. Just because you hear something, doesn't mean you understand it. And by that I mean, yes you may realize that you're hungry, but what for, and in how much quantity, that can be a whole new issue.
  • stormieweather
    stormieweather Posts: 2,549 Member
    Yes!

    Because every hunger pang doesn't necessarily translate into whatever I can scarf down. Sometimes, I really NEED protein and my pangs are trying to tell me that. Other times I crave veggies (fresh, crunchy ones) and until I have them, I'll still feel that vague feeling of "needing" something to eat. The same is true of carbs (for energy) and fats (for satiation). It really takes being aware of what you have eaten recently and what your body needs...still.
  • sincitylulu
    sincitylulu Posts: 22
    I am at a healthy weight and I still can't listen to my body. If I could possibly listen to my body then keeping off the weight would be completely effortless. I would have never gained weight in the first place.

    thus we get into the more complicated part of, now that you're healthy, and can listen to your body, the hard part is understanding what it's saying.

    Sometimes when I listen to my body, I think I'm trying to read braille. Just because you hear something, doesn't mean you understand it. And by that I mean, yes you may realize that you're hungry, but what for, and in how much quantity, that can be a whole new issue.

    well said
This discussion has been closed.

Categories